Tea and Honey
by Lesser Penguin
Summary: This is an Underswap Papyrus x Shy Reader fanfic. You were wandering alone in a bustling city, and then found some skeletons!
1. Chapter 1

You sat on a wooden bench you found in front of some store, twiddling your thumbs. A small (f/c) travel bag sat beside you, looking as worn down as you and possibly indicating you weren't just going on a walk. It was getting quite dark, though you couldn't tell what time it was. It could only be eight, but it was winter, so the days were shorter. You took a deep breath and exhaled, watched as a white cloud came out of your mouth. You used to think it was magic, but you knew that such things didn't exist.

You felt cold from a sudden breeze and your (h/l) (h/c) hair moved in the wind. You rubbed your hands over the sleeves of your thin, threadbare (f/c) jacket. It was going to be a long night.

It all started when your dad died. Your mom started getting into alcohol, drugs, smoking, and more. At first, you didn't blame her. You missed dad as well. However, it soon turned into a week, a month, a year. Five years. She started acting different. Soon, it wasn't when she was high or drunk that was bad. When she wasn't, she always seemed to blame you for his death, along with other things. When she couldn't find any more reasons why you destroyed her life, she would often ignore you altogether. That was sometimes worse. You couldn't take it anymore, so you ran away. That was two weeks ago, and being homeless is harder than it looked. Still, despite the emptiness in your belly and the sore feeling from sleeping in ridiculous places, there was no way you could go back there.

You got up, shuffling as you pushed on the (f/c) shoe you knocked off while sitting because you are a total fidgeter. You couldn't rest here; you had to find somewhere to sleep tonight.

The street was emptier than before, and you realized it must be a bit later than you thought. You quickly walked along, not looking anyone still left on the street in the eye. You heard lots of stories about people who are mugged late at night, so it was better to find someplace safe before it got really late. You picked up the pace.

"Hey!" You felt someone tap your arm and dropped your bag in shock, whirling around. All the worst possible scenarios went through your head, but what you saw was a very adorable, tiny skeleton. He wore a light blue battle body and a matching scarf. You must be going crazy.

"Wait...what?...are you real?" you asked. You poked his shoulder out of curiosity, thinking it was some sort of dream. He was very real. "Um...hi," you said.

"Have you never seen a monster before?" he asked, head tilting to the side.

"...no..." you said, still processing this.

"Well, that's okay. Anyways, I am the magnificent Sans!" he said, proudly making a pose. He almost looked like a superhero, the way his scarf fluttered in the breeze. It was adorable, and you smiled a little.

"H-hi," you said. "I'm (y/n)."

"So..." he said, his face getting a bit more serious. "Did you see a skeleton around here? He's about this tall..." he said, moving his boney, white hand up high in the air. "Also, he wears an orange sweater."

"Um..." you said. "No, I don't think so." You looked around, pausing. You looked down at the skeleton, only to find that he was already rushing off down the street.

"Wait!" you said, quickly picking up your bag and chasing after him. He paused, looking back at you. "I'll help you find him," you said, not wanting to leave him on his own.

"Wow, really? You're really nice, (y/n)," Sans said, his bright blue eyes shining. You looked away awkwardly. "Thanks."

You both walked around for quite a while until you entered an area with giant apartment complexes. You were feeling quite tired at this point, since you were hungry, tired, and walking around with a hyper-active skeleton, so you had to take a moment to catch your breath.

"Sans! Sans?" The voice was casual and pleasant, but was laced with worry. You saw a skeleton turning the corner. He was much taller than Sans and wore a big orange sweater. Yup. That was definitely him.

"Papyrus!" Sans said, quickly running towards him, arms stretched wide. Papyrus looked relieved and grabbed Sans, swinging him around in a hug. "Where have you been?" Papyrus asked him. You started walking away, attempting to avoid a potential awkward situation.

"Oh! I got lost, but! I was okay. I even made a new friend! Their name is (y/n)! Wait, (y/n), where are you going?" You flinched.

"Oh!" Papyrus said, walking up to you. "Sorry, I didn't notice. Thanks for taking care of my brother."

"Um...it's okay," you said.

"Hey, what about you join us for supper?" he asked.

"N-no, I can't," you said, holding your hands up. "I don't want to intrude."

"But we're friends now!" Sans said, tackle hugging you and nearly knocking you over. "You have to come! It'll be fun." You looked over at Papyrus and he gave you a kind, friendly smile. These two skeletons seemed a lot nicer than most people you knew.

"Uh...y-yeah, sure," you said, looking away. "Yay!" Sans said, letting you go and jumping up and down. "Pappy, where are we going?"

"Hm..." he said. "What about we show them Muffet's new place?" Who was Muffet? Another monster?

"Ooh, can I have a spider donut?" Sans asked excitedly. "Wait," Papyrus said. "(Y/n), what do you think? They have some really good dishes there."

You were caught off guard. "Sure," you said. "I don't really care. I mean...I care...uh, yeah." Smooth. Sans was already taking off again and Papyrus quickly followed, grabbing your arm and pulling you along.

"Sans, I swear, if you get lost again..." Papyrus said, feigning annoyance. You blushed a little when he touched you. For some reason, you felt a warm, comforting feeling emanating from him, like magic. Luckily, he let go quickly.

"Don't worry, Pappy! I'll be careful!" Sans said, a few feet ahead now. He gave his brother an adorable smile. You all eventually made it to the cozy shop, where you saw the words 'Muffet's Bakery' on the front in cursive letters. The bakery was covered in black siding, and there were designs like spider webs going down the sides. It really stood out, but in a very elegant, nice way.

"Hey, Muffet!" Papyrus said cheerfully, opening the door and letting you all inside. There was a spider lady standing behind the counter, wearing a frilly purple dress and holding a pink tea pot. You noticed that there were several spiders crawling around the shop. You gulped, and made sure to look at your feet to make sure you didn't step on any stray spiders. Luckily, they stayed a distance away. You weren't the biggest fan of spiders, however, these ones weren't behaving like normal spiders, so it'd probably be fine.

Muffet nodded, smiling at Papyrus, and they seemed to have a quick, quiet, wordless conversation. You guessed they were good friends. Papyrus ordered food and you all sat down, chatting. You sat beside the window and Sans sat beside you. Papyrus sat across the table.

"U-um, is it besides me to ask, or...uh, how did...monsters...get here?" You asked. You felt awkward calling them monsters because it sounded rude, but you didn't know how else to address them.

"We used to live under Mt. Ebott!" Sans said. "But, we managed to escape."

"Where's that?"

"Oh, you don't know?"

You never were really in the loop of things. "Uh, n-no."

"It's that giant mountain you can see across the city!" You pictured the mountain, and remembered wondering what was over there. "Oh."

"We were all trapped underground because of a magical barrier," Papyrus said. "A human named Chara fell down into the mountain and saved us, breaking the barrier and setting us free a few months ago." You had trouble believing this was legit, then again, there were two skeletons talking to you and you were being hosted by a spider.

"Okay then." you said.

You saw several spiders carrying plates over the webs draping from the ceiling, climbing down and placing a plate in front of each of you. "Thanks," you said, looking down at the little spider. It waved at you and you smiled, finding that ridiculously adorable. It ran back up onto the webs and you watched the tiny spiders curiously. Sans immediately grabbed his donut, stuffing it into his mouth. "Careful, Sans, you'll choke," Papyrus said, taking a sip of his coffee. Sans mumbled something unintelligible.

You ate your meal quickly, since you were super hungry, and instantly felt a lot better. The skeletons started talking about something, but you were zoning out.

"(Y/n)?" Sans said, poking your shoulder. "Huh?" you asked. Your eyes were starting to get heavy. You hadn't had a meal that good in ages, and you felt really tired now that your belly was full.

"I guess it's getting a bit late, huh?" Papyrus said. "We kept you here quite a while, want me to bring you home?"

"No," you said way too quickly.

"It's too late for you to be walking around by yourself," he said. You yawned, your eyes closing shut for a few seconds. "(Y/n)?"

"Sorry, what?" you asked, trying to stay conscious, but you felt yourself falling against the window and drifting off into sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

" _Hey, (y/n)," your dad said, entering the room. He was still wearing his scientist uniform, since he had a late shift that day. His curly brown hair was a bit long and unkempt, and his clothes were disheveled, but his eyes were shining with pride. Perhaps he just made a discovery. "Are you ready for bed?" he asked._

 _"I don't want to go to bed yet," you said, pouting and crossing your arms. He chuckled._

 _"Well, how about I tell you a story?"_

 _"Okay!" you said cheerfully. "Tell me the one about the monsters!"_

 _"Alright." He sat down beside you, ruffling your hair. He grabbed a worn book from the shelf beside your bed, opening to the first page. You sat beside him and looked at it. Large pictures dominated the pages, and you saw a battleground with monsters and humans wielding weapons. At the front of the monster army stood a goat monster, pointing a giant trident down at the humans. She looked really cool._

 _He took his glasses from his lab coat pocket and adjusted them onto his nose. "Long, long ago, monsters inhabited the earth. They were all different sizes, from little bunny monsters to fierce dragons."_

" _Where'd the monsters go, if they used to be here?" you asked, despite knowing the story by heart._

 _"Well, some humans were fearful of the big, scary monsters. The monsters had the power to steal their souls, and when they did so, could harness great powers. Humans were scared of this ability, and this led to a giant war...Humans vs Monsters. Eventually we trapped them all underground after some brave humans fought with their lives, and they were never seen again." You always felt bad for them at this part of the story. Even if some of them were scary, did they really do anything wrong?_

 _"But the monsters can be saved, right?" you asked._

 _"If a human fell into the underground the monsters might be able to get back. However, that will never happen."_

 _"I hope it happens," you said. "It's not fair for the monsters to be trapped underground. Some humans died, but the humans were the ones who attacked. The monsters did nothing wrong."_

 _"I'm not so sure about that," he said. "Some of the monsters are malicious."_

 _"They are?"_

 _"Yup. There's even some that like to prey on young children," he said, snatching you and pulling you into a hug. You giggled. "Do you know what they are called?" he said ominously._

 _"What?"_

" _Tickle monsters!" he said, tickling you. You laughed, trying to push him away. "D-daddy!" you squealed. He picked you up, placing you down in the middle of your bed._

 _"Be warned," he said, smiling. He pulled your blankets snugly around your shoulders and you yawned. "Sweet dreams, (y/n)," he said, kissing you on the cheek._

 _"Wait," you said. "Can you check the closet?"_

 _"Sure thing," he said, opening it dramatically and looking inside. "All clear!"_

 _"Okay," you said with a smile. "I love you, daddy." You drifted off into sleep as he exited the room._

 _"I love you too, (y/n)."_

You batted open your eyelids, waking up inside a dark room, save for the numbers on a small electronic clock beside you that read '11:12'. The weight of blankets pressed down on you, and you thought that you were back inside your home. You didn't want to get up, the stray thought crossing your mind that if you fell back asleep you could find your dad back. As you attempted to slip back into darkness, you found that your thoughts were too active to fall back asleep. You thought of the book and the monsters depicted in it. You hadn't thought of that story in a while, since your mom didn't condone 'believing in fake realities', or so she called it. You agreed with her that the book was simply a product of someone's fantasy, however, you still found the idea appealing. The idea that another race could live side by side with yours, but have epic monsters, was something that filled you with excitement. Determination. Monsters...they are cool.

 _Wait a second...monsters..._

You bolted upright, realizing what happened the day before. You found two friendly skeletons, and then met some cute spider monsters. But after that, what happened? You gasped, realizing that your memories cut out in the middle of their conversation. Was it possible that you fell asleep? Mortifying. If so, where were you now? You leapt from the bed, heading towards the light switch that was slightly illuminated by the stray light coming in from under the door. As you pushed the switch up with your palm in your half-asleep daze the light momentarily blinded you and you had to recover for a second by closing your eyes, blinking them open slowly.

As your vision adjusted, you gazed around the room. It was scarcely decorated, and had only a dresser, side table, alarm clock, and a very long bed. Orange paint coated the walls, which was an unusual colour for a bedroom, but it worked very well. For some reason a sock was lying smack dab in the middle of the room, but it didn't look like it was put there by laziness. The sock looked unused, and was lying on the floor flat and unwrinkled. You saw your bag underneath the bed and let out a sigh of relief, quickly rushing towards it. The contents of this bag were the only possessions you had left, and you weren't sure what you would do if it went missing. You opened the bag, having to pull on the zipper carefully because an article of clothing got caught in it. Hopefully the zipper would last, because you already had it 'break' several times.

When you opened your bag your eyes fell to a picture sitting on top. You picked it up and looked at it, leaning against the bed while doing so. The picture depicted you with your mom and dad, all dressed in formal attire. It was likely Easter, because you were each holding a fluffy bunny rabbit. The rabbits were all in mid-nose-wiggle as the picture was taken, so there was a little bit of blur around each nose. In the picture you all stood close to each together, looking happy; a family that loves one another. It seemed a bit ridiculous how far things had fallen. You looked up at the bed, wishing for a second that you were truly back in your own bed, in your parents house. That your mom still loved you, and your dad was still there. You teared up a bit, realizing that thinking this way was fruitless.

"Hey," a voice said. You jumped a little, seeing the taller skeleton in front of you, standing in the half-open doorway. You were zoned out, so you didn't notice him come in. Must have been a very quiet door though. You blinked away your tears and quickly turned around, putting the picture back in the bag and zipping it up. You turned back around to face him.

"H-hi," you said to him, unsure what to say. Since it was brighter in the room than the lighting last night, you could see that his eyes were actually a pleasant golden colour. When you made eye contact with him you experienced an unknown feeling. You could feel the essence of his soul, if souls existed. His kindness caused warmth to spread through yours, and made you in turn feel happy. You normally had trouble making eye contact with others, but right now you didn't want to look away.

He coughed, a slight yellow tint going across his...cheeks? You realized you were probably staring too long and quickly looked away, cheeks heating up a bit as well. He broke the silence, leaning his arm against the doorframe as he began to speak. "Did you sleep well? You were out like a light," he said. You switched back to reality, realizing you were in someone else's home.

"Um...yes. S-sorry, for uh...you know..." you said. You felt a little bit awkward, realizing that you must have fallen asleep in front of them, despite hardly knowing them.

"No big deal," he said with a smile. "Come down for some breakfast, okay? After that we can have you going on your way." You nodded in response and he closed the door. You let out the breath you didn't know you were holding.

You walked hesitantly down the stairs with your bag, seeing the living room ahead attached to the front door and what you assumed to be the starting of a kitchen to the left. You were tempted to make a break for it, but realized that you should probably thank them for 'allowing' you to stay overnight. Also, you had no idea where their house was.

"(Y/n)?" Papyrus said, coming out of the kitchen. "Good, you're up." He walked towards you, handing you a cup of tea. The cup had a knitted layer around it that protected your hands against the heat. "It's chamomile tea," he said. "I hope you like that. We should have some cereal or something too..."

You looked at him, shocked. Why were these monsters being so nice to you? You thought back to your dream, and the monsters in the book. Were these the monsters from the story? Probably not, but you started feeling very curious. Perhaps it was because you were related to a scientist. You didn't think that monsters existed, but they were right in front of you, so you couldn't go against it. They said they came from under the mountain, so if they were there for a while, that would explain how humans forgot about them. They said that Chara set them free. Is Chara a human? Your dad said a human could set them free, so that aligned with the story. However, how could they break a magic barrier? You took a quick sip of the tea. The soothing flavour of the tea and the sweetener-which was likely honey-made you feel very peaceful. You noticed that Papyrus was still standing there. "Th-thanks," you stammered, realizing you probably just zoned out for a few minutes.

"You're welcome," he said, seemingly without notice.

Thumping noises came from upstairs and you saw Sans running down (thankfully not falling down) the stairs. "Hey, (y/n)," he said as he ran past. "Hey, Paps, I'm going to be training with Alphys today," he proudly announced. "She's going to teach me some new battle techniques!"

"Okay, I'm sure you'll do amazing," he said, smiling down at his brother. You could tell Papyrus was very proud of Sans.

"Yup! The Magnificent Sans will defeat them all! He he he!" He ran out the door without closing it, his blue scarf flying up into the air. Papyrus quickly went to close the door as a cold draft came in. You finished your tea and went to the kitchen, cleaning your cup and a few other dishes you saw lying around. It was the least you could do.

"Whatcha doing?" Papyrus asked, standing in the doorway. You nearly dropped a plate.

"U-um...I'm helping out a little. Cause, you know. Um...c-can you not sneak up on me? I don't know when you're coming."

"Can't help it," he said with a wink. "I don't have much meat on my bones." You smiled a little at this, but focussed your attention to washing the dish.

"It's okay, I'll do it later," he said, taking the dish from you and putting it in the other half of the sink. "Your family is probably worried about you. I'll bring you home now." You took a step back, thrown off guard.

"W-wait...wh-what?" you said. "Oh...y-yeah, um...you can just bring me back to where we met, I-I think I can get home from there." You wiped your hands off on a towel and picked up your bag, heading out of the kitchen.

"Are you ready to go? Where do you live?" he asked. "I can get you there pretty fast."

"Um...y-you can just take me to where we were yesterday. In the city." You tried to keep your voice neutral to avoid suspicion, but this ended up making it more nervous sounding.

"Hm..." he said, looking at your bag. You moved it behind you. "Are you hiding something?"

"M-my bag?" you said sheepishly. You wanted the ground to swallow you whole and gulped. He walked up to you, and you took a step back. "I can tell something's wrong. You can tell me," he said. You looked up into his eyes. "H-huh?"

"I'll get to the point. Why were you out alone in the city with a traveling bag?"

You said nothing for a few minutes, trying to come up with an excuse. You couldn't think of anything, and hung your head. "I-I ran away from my home." You paused, but he waited for you to continue. "My dad died, and...my mom is always mad at me. So...I left."

"She's your mom," he said eventually. "I'm sure she misses you." You stayed quiet and started picking at the bobble on the string coming from your jumper. "Would you like to stay here for a while?" he asked. "I'd feel bad just dropping you back into the streets." You looked at him, shocked. He sounded serious, like he was actually planning on letting you stay.

"I couldn't do that," you said. "I've already bothered you both too much..." He looked at you for a second and then stood up, stretching. "I think we have some clothes somewhere that'll fit you, and you can take a shower. Also, the spare bedroom is quite cluttered, but we can clear it out." You didn't say yes, but you also didn't say no, and a rather awkward silence filled the room. He shrugged, taking your bag from you and heading up the stairs.

"W-wait!" you said, chasing after him.


End file.
